Come What May
by Wired Witch
Summary: After returning from a scout mission to a apparently deserted planet, Trip and Reed find that they are not alone.


  
  
  
  


TITLE: Come What May

AUTHOR: Erin Chase

SUMMARY: After returning from a scout mission to a apparently deserted planet, Trip and Reed find that they are not alone. 

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything Trek related, please don't sue me, I don't have any money anyway.

NOTES: I never intend to write loads but it sorta just happens anyway. Most of my fics are about Reed or Trip cuz they're my favourites. I don't do slash fic, oh, and I'm not too good at technobabble but I tried! 

  
  


---Cold. Why was it so cold? At that point Charlie Tucker became incredibly aware of himself. He was sweating like he was stranded on a planet with three suns but he felt so cold he was shivering.----

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A FEW HOURS EARLIER 

Charlie Tucker was excited to be on another away mission, especially one as exciting as this one. Travis has detected some kind of never-before-seen technology down on the planet, Regas Tell, but no life signs. In theory that meant that it was theirs for the taking, right?

So far so good. Not a single soul around, except for the others on the mission, T'Pol, Hoshi and Reed. Reed had flown the shuttle and he went along because Mayweather said that there was an indication of weapons technology down there too. He was as excited as Tucker. Boys with toys. 

He guessed T'Pol was there because of the same reason. It wasn't unknown for technology to develop a mind of its own, she had said to the Captain. Hoshi was there to translate any alien texts they might come across. In case they set off any of these alleged weapons, mistaking them for the light switch or something. 

"There!" Reed exclaimed as he was the first to spot a building behind a hill. Actually it was more like it was integrated into the hill. He quickened his pace which caused Tucker to smile and follow as eagerly. 

T'Pol paused before walking at a dignified pace towards the structure. 

There was no door to the building, just a dark passageway in. Around the entrance was a silver frame with symbols on it. 

"What do you make of it Hoshi?" Tucker asked. "Looks like this mission has something for everyone." He smiled. 

Hoshi smiled back, staring at the alien text. If in fact it was alien text. It could be just decoration. She remembered the time she stood for hours trying to 'read' a nonsensical pattern around a wall. "It's like nothing I've ever seen before." Her smile widened. "Permission to stay here and analyse the text Commander?" She asked.

"Go ahead." Tucker replied. T'Pol couldn't help but notice that Hoshi had addressed Commander Tucker rather than herself, the higher ranking officer. She had no time to say anything though as the Commander headed into the building. Perhaps she would talk to the Captain when they returned to the ship.

Her train of thought was interrupted when she saw a small beam of light stemming from the wall and going through Commander Tuckers skull. He hadn't seemed to notice, but Malcolm had.

"Sir!" He blurted out, causing Tucker to turn around. The light was gone. 

"What is it?" He asked.

"There was some kind of beam - it seemed to go straight through your head!" He explained. Trip didn't quite know what to think until he saw something of the same description happen to Reed. T'Pol pulled him away but the beam followed him. "I suggest we leave." 

"What? Wait, this thing could just be a scan of some sort. It doesn't hurt, right Reed?" Trip said. 

"Right, though I'll admit it's a little unnerving." Reed replied as the beam cut off. There was a brief pause while they waited for the little light thing to 'scan' T'Pol, but it didn't happen. 

"It is my recommendation that we return to Enterprise and repeat our initial scans."

"Your recommendation is noted." Tucker said and continued into the corridor. Reed glanced at T'Pol as if to say 'sorry!' but in truth he was anxious to look at this new technology. He gave a slight shrug and followed Tucker. 

T'Pol turned to Hoshi who had been watching. "Inform the Captain of our progress." She ordered then switched on her flashlight and trailed the others. 

Reed's eyes widened as the lights came on. "How did you did that?"

"I didn't." Trip replied. A door ahead of them opened. This was weird. "You think someone knows we're here?"

"Scans suggested that the systems here could be automated. It seems the scans were correct." T'Pol answered.

Tucker gave her a glance and switched his flashlight off. Reed followed suit. It was one room, though it was pretty large. It was very dirty like everything had a thin coat of black oil on it. Things were rusted too, not a sign of superior technology at all. 

"Well this isn't what I expected." Trip said to himself. In the centre of the room was a large cylinder shaped machine. Surrounding it was a panel with more symbols on. Suddenly everything whirred into action. Lights flared up, and on the centred machine strips of it that weren't visible before lit up too. 

"Don't touch anything." Tucker ordered, though it was fairly obvious. Even if he wanted to, Reed would certainly hesitate before touching the grimy surroundings. 

"We should get Hoshi in here to take a look at these symbols. See what they are." Reed suggested, eyeing up the place. The symbols were dotted about all over the place. 

"We should look around first." Trip said. T'Pol had remained quiet which was fine by Trip. He knew she disagreed with his philosophy of 'jump right in and ask questions later.' He knew it was important to be cautious with alien worlds and all but sometimes (most of the time) his impatience and curiosity got the better of him. It was human nature.

"I'm detecting a faint lifesign." T'Pol said.

"What?" Reed asked. "There was nothing here when we scanned earlier"

"It seems there is something here now." 

"Where's it coming from?" Trip inquired. 

"I cannot pinpoint a location. It is coming from somewhere near or inside this room."

"Alright let's spread out and find it." 

T'Pol noticed Tucker's inability to see her as an authority figure, especially when the Captain was not around. She decided to let it rest until they returned to Enterprise.

Trip spun his head around when he heard a noise. It appeared to have moved right passed him, like it was inside the wall surrounding him. 

"Commander?" T'Pol questioned.

"Did you hear that?" He replied but neither T'Pol nor Reed had heard anything. "I heard something....from this wall right here." He pressed himself against the cold metal and listened for the sound again. 

To the surprise and dismay of the others there was a sudden explosion from behind them. An alarm sounded and the light turned to a dangerous red. In the confusion Trip pulled away from the wall but kept one hand on it. A huge surge of electricity jolted through him and he let out a yell.

T'Pol and Reed saw Tucker go flying across the room, hitting the cylindrical machine in the centre. He fell to the floor unconscious.

"I suggest we leave immediately." T'Pol announced as she and Reed went to help Trip. 

"Suggestion noted!" Reed shouted and put Trips arm around his shoulder as T'Pol grabbed the other one. Between them they carried him out while things continued to explode behind them. 

Hoshi saw the others approach and looked extremely concerned. "We have to get to the shuttle right now." T'Pol stated matter-of-factly. 

"What did you do?!?!" Hoshi exclaimed. Her question went unanswered and when they were halfway towards the shuttle, the entire building exploded. Falling to the ground, Reed and T'Pol dropped Tucker. Hoshi hit the ground as well. 

When the four were inside the shuttlecraft Reed immediately fired up the controls while T'Pol assisted. Hoshi contacted the Captain. "Captain Archer, we're heading back." She looked over at the still unconscious Trip and added "And prepare the medical deck."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trip awakened to see a bright light above him. When his eyes were focussed again, he realised he was on a bed in the medical bay. He could hear Dr Phlox humming. Looking over at him, Trip saw that the doctor was doing something with his back turned. 

He let out a moan when it dawned on him that he was in a great deal of pain. Dr Phlox heard the engineer and turned around, cheerful as ever. "Mr Tucker, glad to see you conscious again."

"How long - " Before Tucker could finish his sentence the Doctor interjected. He was used to the kinds of questions people asked when they awoke from unconsciousness. 'Where am I?' , 'What happened?' , 'How long have I been asleep?', that sort of thing. 

"Only around half an hour." He stated chirpily. "You're going to be absolutely fine."

"Then why do I feel like someone scraped my bones with their fingernails?" Trip asked, closing his eyes again.

"Hm" Phlox laughed. "I've never heard that analogy before. You surprise me every day."

"Glad to be of assistance. Are the others okay?" 

"Fine. A couple of scratches and minor burns but you were the worst off." 

"I feel privileged." Trip replied wearily. Dr Phlox was happy to see that even a major electrical shock couldn't take away the humans sense of humour. Fascinating. 

"You're awake!" Archer said happily as he entered. "How are you feeling?"

"Ever been struck by lightening?" Trip muttered. He sat up and swung his legs round the side of the bed. "So what exactly happened down there?" He wondered.

"Far as we can tell, the place had some kind of automated defence system to stop intruders." Archer told him. 

"Then why'd it let us in there in the first place? And why didn't it even have a door?"

"We'll never know I guess."

"Cap'n?" 

"The place exploded soon after T'Pol and Reed carried you out." 

"Oh......" Was all Trip could think of to say. "Well I guess I better get back to work, huh?"

"Not quite yet." Dr Phlox jumped in. "You need to rest. You don't just recover from a nasty shock like that."

"Ah hell I feel fine. You know me Cap'n," He pleaded, "I can't sit still for a minute!" 

This was definitely true of the engineer. If he went to his quarters he'd only find something to do that wasn't resting. "Alright Trip, you can go back to work. But take a break any time okay?" He ordered. 

Trip smiled and jumped off the bed. But perhaps it was a little too soon to be leaping about. Trip's legs buckled under him and he almost lost his balance. Archer had turned at this point and hadn't seen. Phlox didn't appear to have noticed either. 

Regaining his composure, Trip headed back to engineering. On the way he met with Reed who was happy to see his crewmate up and about once more. "Hey" Trip greeted warmly. 

"I knew it wouldn't be five minutes before you could stand to be away from here." Reed grinned as they arrived at their destination. 

"You alright?" Trip asked noticing a small cut on Reed's forehead. 

"Oh it's nothing. I was lucky." He dismissed. 

  
  


"Glad to hear it. Listen thanks for draggin me out back there, I appreciate it." 

"You would have done the same" Reed replied. Trip turned to go down the ladder but suddenly felt a wave of dizziness come over him. Reed noticed his friend sway and grabbed his arm when he abruptly began to fall. 

"Woah...." Trip managed. 

"Maybe you should go and lay down Sir?" Reed suggested with a furrowed brow. 

"Maybe I should go and lay down." Trip said as if he hadn't heard his comrade.

Reed was concerned as he watched Tucker leave engineering looking somewhat bewildered. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Trip finally reached his quarters he collapsed onto the bed. Rest sounded like a good idea now. He fell asleep almost straight away but it didn't last for long. 

Cold. Why was it so cold? At that point Trip became incredibly aware of himself. He was sweating like he was stranded on a planet with three suns but he felt so cold he was shivering. His breathing was uneven and wild. He couldn't see much - everything was blurred like the room was filled with smoke.

"Trip, you're needed in engineering." A voice came from nowhere. It sounded distorted, like it wasn't really there, like it was an echo. Did he imagine it? Trip slowly turned his head towards the sound but there was no-one there. 

"Trip, do you copy?" The voice came again after a moment. It sounded kind of familiar but he couldn't make it out. Was it someone he knew? Suddenly Trip found that he couldn't breathe. He screwed his eyes tight shut and for a moment he regained his wits and tried to say something, anything, but he couldn't breathe.

"Commander Tucker?" Captain Archer spoke again. Captain Archer, his friend......

Tucker fell out of bed and crawled in the direction of the sink. The reflection would have scared him to death if he hadn't been half way there already. He could feel himself turning blue, his vision was getting worse. 

Then, as if it was a great relief, his stomach lunged and Trip coughed up a bright red fluid. The colour was clearer than anything else. Blood. At least now he could breathe, even if it was in small gasps. Charlie collapsed, sliding down the wall. 

A brief moment of peace came as he closed his eyes. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hoshi felt guilty. She almost blamed herself for what happened on the planet. If she could have read that writing or went with them inside instead of staying, maybe she could have warned the others. 

Instead it was possible that she could have gotten them all killed. Commander Tucker had been seriously hurt. She kept seeing Reed rubbing his head. T'Pol looked indifferent but the guilt wouldn't go away. 

On hearing that Trip was awake and okay, she decided to go and see if she could apologise. It was probably more to make herself feel better which in turn made her feel worse. To end the vicious cycle she headed for Trip's quarters.

Reed was headed for the bridge and the two passed in the halls. He told her about Trip almost falling off a ladder in engineering and that maybe it would be best if she waited a while to go and see him but Hoshi didn't want to wait.

"Commander Tucker?" She called when she got to his quarters. "Can I come in?" She called again. No reply. Maybe he was asleep. Maybe he was back down in engineering, back to work already. But there was no way Hoshi could get anything done if she didn't apologise.

"Commander Tucker are you in there?" Giving up, she turned away but then remembered what Reed had said. Maybe Trip was unconscious......or worse. As her mind played out a dozen situations she entered the code to open the door. 

The lights inside were off. As she stepped in Hoshi noticed that the covers on Trip's bed were screwed up. She was cautious with her step but scanned the room with her eyes. She couldn't see him. Should she check the bathroom? The door was open. She peered round the door and was horrified by what she saw.

Trip was leaned against the wall, a hint of blood trickled from his mouth and the sink was filled with it. He was glistening with sweat and he was completely still. 

For a moment Hoshi didn't, couldn't move. Finally she called for help. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What's wrong with him?" Archer said sternly and clearly. 

"I'm afraid I don't know Captain." Dr Phlox responded with a regretful tone. 

"You screened everyone when they came back from the planet. You said they were clean." He said, trying to keep his temper but finding it exceedingly more difficult. 

T'Pol, Hoshi and Malcolm were there for a re-screening. Hoshi stood in the corner of the room feeling terrible - in an emotional sense anyway. 

"They were. They still are." Dr Phlox tried, receiving the results for the three others screenings. They came out of the room as the door opened. 

"Does he look healthy to you?!" Archer shouted. Phlox said nothing. He was at his wits end. Every device he had was unable to tell him anything more about Trip's condition than was visually obvious. "Tell me something Doctor!"

"He's dying." The Denobulan answered quietly. There was a silence that could deafen. 

T'Pol was the first to speak. "Captain, if I am correct in stating that Commander Tucker showed no signs of illness in his previous scan, I suggest that the three of us are quarantined right away."

"There's no point." Archer began. "You've all been around the ship a dozen times. If you do have the same thing as Trip, chances are it's already too late." There was another prolonged silence. "Help him." He spat and left the room. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hoshi was the one who found him. Apparently she went to see him to apologise because she felt responsible for what happened on the planet. The Doctor says he's not doing too good. In fact, he'd dying. I feel so useless. I don't have any medical experience. If Phlox can't do anything, what chance do I have in helping? What makes things worse is that I have three other crewmen that could have the same thing......."

At that moment someone came to Captain Archer's door. "End starlog. Come in." He called and T'Pol entered. "What can I do for you T'Pol?" He asked. "Are you feeling okay?" He added worriedly. 

"I am fine." She responded. 

"Glad to hear it."

"Are *you* feeling 'okay' Sir?" She inquired.

"I'm sorry?" Jon hadn't expected that question, not from T'Pol anyway. He waited for her to explain further.

"You seemed exceedingly agitated towards the Doctor. It is evident that there was nothing Doctor Phlox could have foreseen."

Archer sighed. He knew the vulcan was right. "How's Trip?" He changed the subject but almost wished he hadn't.

"Commander Tucker's condition has not improved." 

"Are Sato and Reed feeling alright? No signs of illness?" 

"The others are healthy, as am I." She acknowledged. There was a moment of quiet and then T'Pol continued. "Doctor Phlox asked to see you."

"What about?"

"I don't know Sir." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Archer set off to see the Doctor straight away hoping that he had some news. Preferably some good news. When he arrived he saw that Trip was still unconscious looking like hell. Though T'Pol had said that his condition hadn't improved, in some way he hoped it wasn't true. 

Phlox went to greet him. "Before I begin Captain I recommend that the other three crew members that were inside that building get here immediately."

Archer went over to the comms. "T'Pol, Hoshi, Reed you are to report to sick bay double time." He used their informal names as to not worry them. He didn't think it would have much of an effect though.

When everyone had arrived, the doctor began. "I have learnt a great deal about Commander Tucker's condition but I'm afraid it's not good news. In fact it's a little difficult to comprehend."

"What is it Doctor?" He pushed, anxious to hear whatever news he had.

Phlox put up some kind of scan on the monitor. It showed a human outline, presumably Trip's. But something wasn't right. Overlaying Trip's chest was a strange blue haze. "What's that?" Hoshi asked, staring at the image.

"It's a lifeform." Phlox said simply. As predicted, no-one said anything so he went on. "It's an electrical lifeform. On pure speculation I performed an B.E. scan on Mr Tucker and this is what I found."

"And it's.....inside him?" Malcolm said in disbelief. 

"That's right. Before I contemplate just how this being got inside the patient I'd like to perform the same scan on the three of you."

A short time later the scans revealed that T'Pol and Sato were clean, free from signs of any lifeforms of any kind. Reed's scan however showed a somewhat smaller version of the blue haze. His face went white. "But....but I feel fine...." He stuttered. 

"From what you have told me about your mission I can theorize that this so-called 'beam' that both you and Mr Tucker encountered somehow transferred two of these beings inside of you." He explained. "This being thrives on electricity which the human body generates a small amount of. The massive electrical shock that the Commander was subject too somehow made the creature increase in matter. Either that or the creature's natural growth was accelerated."

"How long before I start to....." Reed couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"I have no way of knowing. It could be weeks, days or....hours."

"Have you discovered a way to remove the being?" T'Pol questioned. 

Phlox sighed. "I honestly don't see how I could."

"But it's killing him" Sato uttered. 

"Why were these creatures there in the first place?" Archer asked no-one in particular. There were so many questions that he needed to ask. Before any could be answered, an urgent tone sounded from Trip's monitors. His heart had stopped.

Phlox promptly ran to his side and picked up an hypo-spray. He administered it to Tucker but the tone carried on. Archer felt sick. He heard Sato whisper 'Oh my god' under her breath. He knew how she felt.

"Doctor...." He said quietly and desperately, not expecting an answer. Phlox picked up some other device and placed it over Trip's heart. His body shook slightly and a tremendous relief was shared by all as the tone returned to a steady beep. 

"Find a way to get it out. I don't care what you have to do. Trip is not going to die." He told the Doctor, then turned his attention to Reed who was sitting in shock, staring into nothing. "Reed, listen to me. We're going to find a way to help you and Trip okay?" 

"Yes sir." He said in the most believable voice he could manage. 

"T'Pol, I want you to help the Doctor in any way possible. Hoshi I want you to try and figure out anything you can about the symbols you saw. Malcolm you have a choice. You can go to your quarters or you can return to your station. It's up to you."

"If it's all the same to you Captain I think I'd rather kept my mind occupied." 

He knew the feeling. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was two hours later and the tension was high all over the ship but particularly on the bridge of the Enterprise. Reed was healthy as of yet, not counting the sick feeling he had had since the news of his own condition.

Hoshi hadn't been able to translate any of the symbols she'd seen. With all the commotion she could barely remember what they looked like. She was feeling worse than ever. T'Pol and the Doctor hadn't made any progress either. 

Malcolm was just about to leave for another check in sickbay when T'Pol's voice sounded. "Captain Archer." She said via the comms system.

"Yes T'Pol what is it?"

"Commander Tucker has regained consciousness." She informed but there was something in her voice that wasn't right.

"That's great news, how is he?" Archer responded.

"I'm afraid he's not quite himself Captain."

Archer thought about what the Vulcan could have meant by this and decided to go and find out straight away. Reed accompanied him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Archer and Reed got to sickbay they saw Trip very much awake, standing on the left side of the room holding a phase pistol at the Doctor and T'Pol. 

"Trip what are you doing?" Archer asked. He could see the blank expression on his chief engineer's face and knew that something was amiss. He turned to the others. "Are you alright?" They nodded in response. 

"I don't think that's Trip sir." Reed stated.

"What?"

"It's the thing inside him. The being." He replied, not taking his gaze from Tucker. 

"How do you know that?" 

"I don't know Sir, I just do." 

"What about Trip?"

"Your friend is still here." Trip replied in a monotone voice that made him sound more like a Vulcan than the engineer they all knew and loved.

"Who are you?" Was the most immediate question that came to mind.

"A being of energy. That is how you described me."

"Why don't you just put the gun down and we can talk." 

"You said you were going to kill me."

"You're...the thing inside of Trip....Now, I can't kill you while you're still inside of him" then, realising how this sounded, Archer quickly reiterated. "I have no intention of harming you. Unless you do so to any of my people." Trip lowered the pistol. "Now if you'd be so kind as to answer a few questions......"

"Where is the other?" The being interrupted.

"The other? You mean the other energy being?" 

"Yes."

"It's inside me." Reed said.

"I want to speak with it."

"That's not gonna happen. I want to know exactly why you and your 'friend' have decided to inhabit the bodies of my crewmen. And then I want you to leave." Archer stated firmly.

"I will explain. My species of being once resided in harmony with the people of Regas Tel. They generated electricity, more than your species. We were essential to their life as they were to us. Then a great plague came. It affected only our vessels but not ourselves. Eventually the race was destroyed along with our own. Only myself and one other survived by sustaining ourselves inside the machinery on the power that remained. No-one came for many years. Then your people arrived. We had no choice but to transfer into your people. The machinery was running out of power and we would have died."

"If I'm right in understanding that you die without a 'vessel' then you will die anyway." T'Pol stepped in. "The bodies you inhabit clearly cannot sustain your species."

"I am aware of this. But there is nowhere else for us to go." 

"The person you're inside right now. Is he alright?" 

"He is close to death. As am I." 

The others in the room didn't care too much right now for the latter statement. The former worried them intensely. T'Pol saw the situation evenly and understood to some extent why the beings had done what they had. The problem now was what to do next. 

An idea materialized in Malcolm's head. Without thinking it over, he blurted out; "The anomaly!" Realising that no-one knew what he was talking about, and seeing that he was receiving a series of strange looks, he explained further. "I detected it a few hours after we got back. It's an electrical cloud, they're scattered all over space, naturally created."

"You think we could use this?" 

"It's a huge amount of electrical energy. It would be perfect for them."

"You would take us there?"

"As long as you leave my crewmen." 

Trip nodded in agreement. He pointed the phase pistol down to the floor. "We must go there immediately. I fear this vessel will not last much longer."

"Malcolm, how long will it take us to get to this cloud?"

"We can be there in fifteen minutes at maximum warp." He answered.

Archer nodded to T'Pol who went to the comms link on the wall. "Mr Mayweather, set a course for the electrical cloud, maximum warp."

"Right away." Came the reply and the ship went into warp.

The group headed for the door when Reed suddenly reached out to stop himself from collapsing. "Reed, are you alright?" Archer said, concerned.

"I don't know....." Came the stammered reply. The Malcolm doubled over and let out a painful yelp. Archer helped him to the floor as he went down. Dr Phlox rushed to get some scanning devices. T'Pol stepped back, giving the dismayed crew member some room. Tucker didn't move and just watched the scene. 

Dr Phlox scanned over Reed's chest which revealed that the creature that resided in him had 

increased in size considerably and was taking over him, just as the being inside Trip had.

Reed rolled his eyes closed then snapped them open. He threw the Captain off of him and grabbed his phase pistol, shooting the Doctor. It was lucky that the pistol was set at stun. Reed leapt to his feet and prepared to fire at the Vulcan. 

Trip lifted up his pistol again, this time pointing it at Reed. "Stop." He ordered. The two beings were at a stand off. 

"Why are you trusting them. We have a perfectly suitable source of energy right here." It was evident that the creature had now taken over Reed. 

"They agreed to help us. This electrical field they speak of will be more than sufficient. It will sustain us for considerably longer than this ship."

Archer got to his feet while T'Pol checked the Doctor. "Stop this. Please. I promise we'll get you to the electrical field. We'll be there very soon." He pleaded.

Reed turned to Archer but kept his pistol pointed at Trip. "What reason should I have for trusting you?" 

"You're inhabiting my crewmen. I'm not about to let them die." Archer stated in an almost scolding tone.

There was a short silence. "We are dying anyway. This species won't let us take this ship and they are offering us a more than adequate alternative. There is no time for this." Trip said. 

Reed said nothing, then answered. "Very well. I accept these terms." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Captain, we've arrived at the cloud Sir." Mayweather's voice came over the comms. The Captain along with Trip and Reed were in the docking bay having been disarmed. Two security officers were there just in case. T'Pol was there to assist and a recovered Dr Phlox was standing by for, well, anything. 

"I am ready to leave this vessel." The being inside Trip said. The other in Reed was also prepared. 

"Before you leave......does your species have a name?" Archer asked curiously. T'Pol looked at him as if he were wasting time. 

"Our species has no use for language. Though it has been beneficial on this occasion." Reed said. 

"Oh. Alright. Er, whenever you're ready." 

Trip took a breath. A blue light emitted from the two men. It was blinding for a moment, then the two hazed clouds dissipated and moved swiftly through the wall of the ship. 

In the bridge, the crew watched the viewscreen intently as two glistening mists fused with the electrical cloud in front of them. 

In the docking bay, the two crewmen fell to the floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"There's a planet a few light years away. Scans indicate alien life." Travis said happily. 

"Sounds good. Set a course." 

"Yes Sir." He acknowledged. 

"Captain. Lieutenant Reed is awake." Dr Phlox said from sickbay. Hoshi sighed with relief and practically everyone else on the bridge followed suit. 

"I'll be right there." Archer smiled. 

In sickbay, Reed was being checked over once more by Phlox who was humming. Archer entered and went to his side. "Captain." Malcolm said cheerfully, but still trying to keep his eyes from closing. 

"How are you?" Archer asked. 

"To be honest I'm.....a little confused. How's the Commander?" He asked, sitting upright. Archer nodded towards Trip's bed across the room. He was still unconscious. The being had done more damage to him that Reed. 

"It'll take a little longer but he should be okay."

"He doesn't remember anything. I thought you might want to explain." Phlox smiled, turned away and resumed humming.

"The last thing I remember was, we were going to get those creatures out of us......are they gone?" Reed asked hurriedly. 

"Yes Lieutenant they're gone. After the being inside you took over, it decided it wasn't too keen on your idea of the electrical cloud. So you, it, attacked us." Reed looked shocked. 

"I attacked you?! Captain I'm so sorry....."

"No need to apologise Malcolm, it wasn't exactly your fault." Archer laughed slightly. 

Across the room, Trip stirred. "Ugh.....have I been drinking?" He mumbled after groaning and lifting his hand to his head. 

"Good morning Trip." Archer smiled at his chief engineer. It was a tremendous relief to have both of his officers awake again. Apart from the fact that the ship had practically fallen apart without them, everyone had missed them both.

"Cap'n?" The question summarised everything he wanted to ask right about now. 

Archer chuckled and looked to the side, wondering how to explain to the crewmen that for the past three days they had been unconscious having been inhabited by a completely new life form. 

He looked to Dr Phlox for some assistance of where to start but found none as the Doctor turned away and continued to hum. 

END


End file.
